Partners in Service: Army Couple Brings Counter-UAS Expertise to Mongolia at Khaan Quest 26

FIVE HILLS TRAINING AREA, Mongolia—Amidst the rolling hills of central Mongolia, two military policemen continued to prove the age-old adage that two heads are better than one.

U.S. Army Staff Sgts. Alexis and Cameron Caratti, both assigned to the 8th Military Police Brigade, had the unique opportunity to train multinational partners on counter-unmanned aircraft system (UAS) operations at Khaan Quest 26… as a married couple.

“It’s a really cool opportunity to work in a professional capacity with someone you’re really close with,” said Alexis. “Sometimes that can even make you work better together.”

Since 2003, Khaan Quest has served as the Indo-Pacific's largest peacekeeping operations exercise, with 2026 marking the 20th iteration of Khaan Quest as a multinational exercise. The exercise featured numerous training lanes, including convoy operations, Tactical Combat Casualty Care and counter-UAS measures.

Approximately 1300 servicemembers from 18 countries were selected to take part in the exercise. Among them were several from the 8th Military Police Brigade who served as instructors, including the Carattis.

Cameron serves in the Intelligence and Security section within the brigade’s 728th Military Police Battalion, where he also works as part of the unit’s new “Warfighter Labs” unmanned aircraft system production initiative—3-D printing, programming and repairing drones.

Alexis serves as a squad leader in the battalion’s 552nd Military Police Company, where, as luck would have it, she also specializes as a counter-UAS subject matter expert.

When it came time for their brigade to select Soldiers to instruct multinational servicemembers on counter-UAS measures, the two proved to be a perfect match.

Alexis was initially selected to attend Khaan Quest to teach drone countermeasures, and Cameron was later recommended by leadership as someone who could operate them, having already completed the Army’s Small UAS Master Trainer Course.

“It's definitely a very interesting—and I would say awesome—experience, to be able to do this with a significant other, especially with both of our assets that go hand in hand with each other, and being able to counteract each other, and then explaining that to different countries,” said Cameron.

The Carattis met while serving on Fort Bragg, North Carolina and married in 2022. Soon after, they enrolled into the Married Army Couples Program, allowing the duo the opportunity to establish a joint domicile together. The two were then stationed together at their present duty station, Schofield Barracks, Hawaii, where they have both grown in their drone specialties at their respective units.

At Khaan Quest, they were able to impart their knowledge to hundreds of soldiers from partner nations, specifically applying their knowledge to the exercise’s theme of peacekeeping operations.

“My Mongolian counterparts are fantastic drone pilots,” said Alexis. “They had almost no experience with counter-UAS, so that was a really cool experience—they taught me a lot and I taught them a lot.”

“A lot of the countries here are very intrigued when it comes to drones, especially with how warfare is changing with the drones, so they ask a lot of questions,” said Cameron. “In my opinion, to know how to defeat something, you should know how to operate it.”

Cpt. Makonnen Martin, commander of Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 125th Finance Battalion and officer in charge of the Khaan Quest 26 mayor cell, described the Carattis’ contributions to the mission as immense.

“A lot of the different nations haven’t really worked with UAS or even counter-UAS products, so they were able to show them that for the first time,” said Martin.

He added that their impact was not limited to drone instruction alone.

“Whenever I needed them, even outside of their lane or regular duties, they were always willing to help out the operation as a whole,” said Martin.

As Khaan Quest 26 draws to a close, the Carattis have demonstrated their ability to interoperate in the fields of multinational training and marriage alike.

“I think training and being out here together is just one very, very unique experience,” said Cameron.